stuff is really priced to move. the mood might not be as jolly. retailers are facing the numbers and they are not good. new report says holiday sales increased only by.7% over last year,. analysts predicted the would be at 3 to 4%, it is only at .7. hurricane sandy taking some of the blame for the low sales. also, the possibility of the fiscal cliff, some think americans are feeling skittish. retailers hope shoppers will come out today to help push numbers up, help their bottom line as they close out this holiday season. the stores are opening here in san mateo and all over the bay area, old navy opening at 5:00 this morning. amy hollyfield, abc7 news. storm watch coverage, all of this rain has caused flooding in some areas. sonoma county, road closures

last night. highway 12 and 121 in shellville remains closed for now south of sonoma, it is expected to reopen sometime today. tomas roman shows the difficult driving conditions throughout the bay area. >> reporter:f+tñc this is too common a sight for many here. highway 120 with one and highway 12 floods after heavy rain then becomes a river when high tide occurs. rain was heavy throughout the bay area in american canyon highway 12 and red top roads streets became flooded after 5 p.m.. umbrellas were necessary. rain poured down on mcdonald avenue slowing traffic. in berkeley ashby avenue exits were covered withstanding water few slowed didn't. roads filled with people returning from spending holidays with relatives and friends)cjyl chp was very busy.

>> i'm actually from the bay area so i'm kind of used to it but it is rough when driving on these freeways. i'm ready for the sun. >> reporter: water was the reason for the closure on mount tam, rain not the culprit. water main burst beneath the road. the road was closed according to a firefighter because they feared it could have undermined the road's strength and cause it to collapse. worker and firefighters found the shut off valve after an hour of searching. they turned the water off to a number of hopes. -- a number of homes. >> we have bottle water. >> reporter: sonoma county officials are keeping a close eye on creeks and streams. the ground is so÷÷jz saturated they are concerned about trees falling over and mudslides.

tomas roman, abc7 news. in east palo alto people living along the san francisco key toe creek are hoping this rain -- won't bring a repeat of monday. city krause worked into the early christmas morning hours placing sandbag along a -- city crews worked into the early christmas morning hours placing sandbags along a leaky levee. a construction project begins in the spring to that.i%b7ñ this morning a stretch of highway 1 south of big sur closed after rock slides from the weekend storm. the slide happened sunday afternoon. crews are working to clear the debris and repair a 60 foot section of damaged roadway. there's no word on when it is going to reopen. officials hope to have one lane open this week. in the north bay rain and

runoff have napa river swollen, but well within its banks. other parts of wine country look more like lakes. water topped levee at sonoma creek. an area where people expect flooding in heavy rain not a big problem for the chardonnay lines this time of year and there are long term benefits. >> for the vineyards it recharges water supply, allows us to -- we get the topsoil from the valley. the bada;hjç news is every yeart costs 10 to $15,000 to clear out. >> they repair broken levees once a year. commuters crossing santa cruz mountains have more water on the roads. typically, it is where most of the rain falls since pacific storms dump water as they cross this first mountain range. fog could be a hazard hill are

saturated and prone to rock and mudslides. crews have been cordoning them off quickly. mountain residents had to spend christmas sandbagging their property. >> the big concern why you guys are filling up on sandbags? >> keep the hill from sliding into my neighbor's house. i got water runoff on the top of my driveway. >> creeks and rivers in the santa cruz mountains are running high they are -- [ unintelligible ] be careful if you are heading out for mountain recreation, creeks are faster than before the storms. 53-year-old bill foster was buried in avalanche near lake tahoe the avalanche was intentionally set but break higher and wider on the slope than expected. foster was uncovered within eight minutes but he died at

the hospital. >> heavy snow in the sierra causing traffic problems. i-80 packed with cars yesterday. the constant snow made it slow going and unsafe without the right gear. >> very dangerous. we saw a car sliding on the side we were kind of scared. we decide odd stop and put our chains on. >> not an -- not an easy task with frozen fingers. squaw valley expects up to 20 inches of fresh powder by tonight >> i couldn't do it with fingers that are fine and if i was in the bahamas, it is a skill putting those chains on. when is the respite from the rain coming? it is brief but coming tomorrow, not today. right there just to the east of jenner towards occidental

we have our best radar return, towards green valley road also occidental road itself. just south of novato from novato boulevard to lucas valley road, light rain there. from larkspur into sausalito, tiburon and belvedere on paradise drive you can see a little light shower activity, rotating from northwest to southeast. anywhere south of here is going to get showers as we head through the morning and into the afternoon. a little fog half mile in santa rosa, rest of us visibility is fine. today just prepare for scattered showers they could be at any time, light and will move quickly, temperatures top out this had low to mid 50s, showers will taper overnight to our break tomorrow low to mid 50s rain rolls back into the forecast friday, better chance of wet weather

saturday. good morning. standing water out in from all the rain, puddling and some high des plainesing expected this morning, light traffic, -- dead week traffic-wise heading into the san francisco area from the bay bridge very light on theyçz' upper deck no delays. this is a live look at the macarthur maze from the east on 580 or the south 880, 80 westbound with all funneling in nicely to the tolls, no metering lights yet. drive out of antioch at the limb from it towards 242 from antioch and pittsburg in the concord area. drive times now up and over the altamont good into the dublin pleasanton area highway 4 westbound and east shore freeway from the carquinez bridge to the maze just under 20 minutes. 4:39 many storms that slammed through the south and killed three are moving towards the northeast this

morning. check out this video of a tornado touching down in mobile, alabama. blew out transformers leaving thousands without power. several injuries were reported. people in parts of florida and georgia also sleeping uneasyly with tornado watches in effect there as well. next, manhole cover explodes in downtown san francisco. what officials say cause the fire. president obama cuts his holiday vacation short. why he's leaving hawaii tonight. first, here's this morning's tech bites. less than a merry christmas for netflix the service went dark for many customers christmas eve for more than 10 hours,. for the first time sales are falling for e-readers like kindle and nook. replaced by tablets which are cheaper and lighter with longer lasting batteries. you may be thinking this

morning about returning a gift bought online. if you are mailing it back make sure you have packaging retailer has a store near you, you might be in luck. >> if you got something bought online you can return it to a brick and mortar store if they have a store. best buy, you#nóqp can return io best . >> that isn't always true, check the rules carefully. those are your tech

live look in high-definition towards the embarcadero. you may encounter showers. [ inaudible ]

the san francisco woman accused of a fatal hit-and-run faces felony charges in court today. police arrested the 23-year-old for leaving the scene after hitting four pedestrians driving in the twin peaks area last week. a 56-year-old woman died at a hospital. police arrested her after they found her damaged car a short distance away. felonycvkñ hit-and-run and vehicular manslaughter. á5mv÷ oakland police lookingr the person=u[ who shot and woud a church parishioner and teenager, gunfire erupted outside the church

manhole cover explosion forced closure of san francisco intersection. popcorn popping came if a fire in an underground vault the fire was caused by equipment failure. this happened after 5:00 last night at third and mission. the fire was quickly put out. this morning, day after christmas, breakfast will be served at glide memorial church. yesterday the feast at st. anthony's drew thousands and scores of people willing to help, among them the naval academy football team in town for the game this saturday. they couldn't have spent christmas in a better way according to their cope. >> feel very fortunate to be here to besñk -- this is by far

the best bowl event that our team has been involved with. >> while navy was at st. anthony's arizona state was serving at glide memorial. glide dished out over 5,000 meals yesterday. even when it comes to volunteer work they have to be opposing sides. mike last you and i spoke monday there was going to be a break in the rain. here we are again. >> monday was the break. another break tomorrow. [ talking over each other ] >> then another storm. >> don't be greedy, two dry days in one week. if you are shopping again today, or returning, don't return the umbrella, you still need it, it is going to be wet today. looking down on san francisco, the part that is dry east of sutro tower towards oakland which is barely dry.

you can see the progression of showers from northwest to southeast. 80 out of vallejo across pomona to hercules saw mill road going to get wet soon highway 4 also pulling out of richmond towards el cerrito where our nexus tim is heading towards berkeley and oakland -- in san francisco, laguna street towards fisherman's wharf back to the presidio where we have a better chance of shower activity now. all rotating around an area of low pressure that is going to keep us in a showery regime throughout the afternoon not going to get rid of it because it is happening now. 41 santa rosa, most of us mid to upper 40s, san francisco

and half moon bay 50. 45 san jose, mid to upper 40s monterey bay and inland. light to moderate showers today, brief break tomorrow, wet again friday and saturday. today's weather maker first warm front moved through brought us steadier rain yesterday now the cold front has passed through that kicked up some of the stronger showers yesterday around now the low itself is kicking up the showers as it hangs around it will wrap around the back side of this and you can see floating northwest to southeast even during the lunch hour and more by 5:00, once the sun sets the low starts to pull away, tomorrow morning mostly clear but patchy fog and cooler than this morning in the 30s and 40s. tomorrow all day dry. now, friday in the morning hours cloud cover rolls in beautiful sunrise, waves of

light rain develop during the afternoon hours and rain will be heavier and more widespread saturday, weak system quarter to half inch north bay, possibly half inch to 3/4 in our mountains. tomorrow partly cloudy, low to mid 50s, low to mid 50s rain on the increase friday, mid 50s friday chance of rain more extended break sunday through possibly the new year on a dry note. good morning. live shot in san jose north 87 past hp pavilion headlights northbound and southbound towards 101 no delays. golden gate bridge looks like they are getting sprinkles on the bridge now, roads looking wet as you make your way from the waldo grade into

san francisco. other than that traffic light there. checking back with all mass transit back on normal schedule this morning, expecting light ridership this week. flooding 121 in the napa area pardon me sonoma area 121 highway 12 closed at 8th street due to flooding they expect to have that cleared by 7:00 this morning. 4:50. president obama is cutting short his christmas holiday in hawaii to resume talks on averting the fiscal cliff. this is video of the president and the first lady departing honolulu yesterday after visiting with troops. mrs. obama and the couple's two daughters are scheduled to remain in hawaii until january 6th. the president willey for washington this evening. lawmakers have less than a week to come to an agreement on how to avert tax increases set to go into effect in january.

. >> in new york police have found a bed in the burned out home of the man who killed two firefighters monday. the victim is believed to be the gunman's 67-year-old sister. a vigil was held monday night for the firefighters. two other firefighters in the hospital. police say ex-convict william spengler armed himself with three weapons and set his house on fire to lure first responders into a trap he kill himself. police say he left a rambling three page note saying he wanted to burn down the neighborhood and kill as many people as possible. he did not give a motive >> the world'sdhfhñ longest high speed rail line is up and running in china. the first bullet train left beijing this morning. the line connects the capital city with the commercial southern hub. the rail line is designed for top speeds of over 200 miles an hour. what used to take 22 hours will now take eight. coming up, another holiday

begins today where you can take part in the bay area's largest kwanzaa celebration. set back for california educators looking for help.

good morning welcome back everybody. 4:54. a little rain in san francisco that is heading to oakland and alameda, full forecast coming a bit of a break in the rain ahead, that's all it is, a break. >> happy kwanzaa. the first day of the seven day festival honoring african-american heritage and culture in the bay area the largest celebration for families will get underway at 10 at the discovery museum in sausalito. the festival was created in 1966 by cal-state university professor. kwanzaa focuses on seven principles, unity, purpose, creativity and faith.

>> wonderful, the season continues, as does the rain. we'll check in with mike. >> you say that with such bated breath. >> yes, sorry to sound negative. >> i understand, you are not the only one talking about it. great highway getting light shower across the golden gate to the marin headlands here's the rain on the bayside of san francisco across the bay bridge towards berkeley and oakland going to get slick there very soon. you can see down to l.a. we have lower elevation rain, higher elevation snow. mainly 50s across the state, 30 tahoe to 36 yosemite where the snow is heaviest, winter weather advisory for tahoe until 4:00 this afternoon, two to four inches above 4,000 feet. four to seven inches above 7,000 feet, you need chains no

matter where you are traveling. lots of snow, highway 80, you will be slow to the nevada line. carry those chains. to berkeley, no restrictions, very light towards the berkeley curve into the macarthur maze. san mateo bridge westbound with tail lights towards foster city and highrise and traffic is flowing nicely. out of foster city towards hayward side of things, 12 to 14 minute drive both directions. flooding again in sonoma area they are asking to you avoid the area until 7 a.m.. 4:56. new this morning, federal government has denied california's request for a waiver from the no child left behind law. the law requires student scores in english and math to improve each year and reduces federal funding to states who don't. the sticking point is

california's reluctance to evaluate teachers based on test scores. california's politically strong teachers unions have fought the change. 33 other states and district of columbia have granted waivers from the law. next, flood waters causing problems in the north bay. terry mcsweeney will have a live report. end of the year treat. how you can get a free ride courtesy of muni, later this week.

mr very goodies 26th, to you all. i'm katie marzullo in for kristen sze. i'm eric thomas. there are sales going on if you are headed to them,eb!a1 wl á encounter rain mike?i >> yesx shores more likely than a steady rain like yesterday we are on the back side of this storm. we have pockets of showers outtx there mainly north bay, sliding southeast. berkeley, emeryville, oakland, pacifica avenue, that's where some of the showers are the great highway over towards ocean